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Going four-wheeling
with Waratah’s new 622C 4x4 head
Waratah’s new 622C 4x4 multi-tree processing head with four roller drive
is getting solid praise from the folks at McNeil and Sons Logging in the
B.C. Interior.
Steve Tresierra (right) of logging
contractor McNeil and Sons is a big fan
of the new Waratah 622C head with its
four roller drive. The 622C four roller
easily pulls in the larger wood and
increases feed speed. “It’s excellent,”
says Tresierra.
By Jim Stirling
P
erformance is persuasive—and
Waratah’s new 622C 4x4 multi-tree
processing head is proving its effectiveness in the bush, getting the job done
where it counts.
The harvesting crews with B.C.’s
McNeil and Sons Logging have seen for
themselves what the 622C head can do in
both multi-tree and single stem processing
applications.
“I was a bit iffy to begin with,” conceded Steve Tresierra, logging/foreman
with McNeil and Sons, based at 100 Mile
House in British Columbia’s southern
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Logging & Sawmilling Journal - December/January 2015
Cariboo region. Tresierra’s natural wariness comes from having run processors
for more than 10 years, and despite being
a big fan and user of Waratah heads in
general. Loggers have learned it’s wise to
adopt a “prove it” attitude about equipment. But about six weeks and approximately 400 hours experiencing the 622C
dissipated all remnants of iffiness. “We
love this head. It’s excellent,” Tresierra
enthused. He offers an example for the
endorsement. “I ran it through some big
fir. It processed two 14 inch diameter
Logging & Sawmilling Journal - December/January 2015
to page 3
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McNeil and Sons teamed the Waratah 622C to a John Deere 2154D, a 21 ton class excavator well suited to the 4x4 head which
is heavier than the 622B. "Our 2154D has enough flow to provide the power that the 622C head needs,” says Steve Tresierra.
“They're a great combination together."
from page 2
peelers at the same time consistently
within half-a-centimetre of target size.”
The 622C four roller easily pulls in the
larger wood and increases feed speed, he
added.
Stem size uniformity is not a multistemming prerequisite for the 622C. “One
really great thing about the 622C is that
when multi-stemming, the trees don’t all
have to be the same size,” he said. Part
of that is attributable to Waratah’s unique
auto stem alignment system coupled with
a shuffling feature for independent log
driving that limits trim waste when multi
stem processing.
“In small to medium size wood, multistemming is the way to go and definitely
boosts our productivity. Even in the bigger
wood, where you would want to single
stem more, the extra power in the head
really goes a long way to contributing to
the speed and smoothness of operating
the machine,” continued Tresierra.
“A lot of thought has been put into
the design of the 622C head,” he noted.
Tresierra cited features like a ¾ main saw
with Automatic chain tensioning; the 360
degree continuous head rotation capability to help boost operator productivity,
and a new, more efficient hydraulic valve
design contributes to increasing hydraulic
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flow. “They’ve reconfigured the entire
head, in my opinion.”
The on-board automation system also
passes muster with Tresierra. “It’s easy to
go through, all on one touch screen about
three inches thick. It’s very user-friendly.”
Tresierra reckons processor operators familiar with the Waratah 622B will
encounter few problems getting comfortable with and getting the most from the
622C 4x4. “If you’re familiar with the
622B, then it’s best to just have some
fun with the new head for the first little
while, let it show you what it can do,” he
recommended.
McNeil and Sons teamed this Waratah
622C to a John Deere 2154D, a 21 ton
class excavator well suited to the 4x4
head which is heavier than the 622B. Tresierra concurred. “Our 2154D has enough
flow to provide the power that the 622C
head needs. They’re a great combination
together.”
The pair delivers an additional advantage. “Our 2154D with the 622C has increased our production a lot, but the fuel
efficiency seems pretty comparable to our
other (excavator) machines. You get more
trees processed using the same amount of
fuel,” explained Tresierra.
“Our little company has always tried
to keep up with technological changes,”
pointed out John McNeil, a partner in
the family-run log harvesting and hauling
company which traces its forest industry
pedigree back into the 1950s. These days,
McNeil and Sons Logging is not exactly
the “little” company McNeil described. It’s
followed the trend of licencees opting for
fewer and larger log harvesting contractors. Latterly, McNeil and Sons has been
harvesting about 350,000 cubic metres a
year for West Fraser Timber, sending volumes to the company’s processing plants
in both Chasm and 100 Mile House.
McNeil and Sons operates 20 pieces
of logging equipment to produce its volumes. The fleet includes three Tigercat
870C bunchers, a Cat D8 dozer, four
Deere 748H skidders, a Deere 850J
dozer, four Deere 2154 log loaders, a
2154 and a 2454 Deere roadbuilder, and
five John Deere 2154D processors with
Waratah heads.
“The idea of multi-stemming has always
interested us. And especially so now when
we’re often operating in .2 cubic metre
piece sizes,” noted McNeil. The log processing function generally—and how efficiently it’s being performed specifically—is
really important to the mills, he added. For
that reason, the process has always been
under McNeil and Sons microscope as it
strives to find ways to improve. In 1998,
for example, the logging contractor put a
couple of the Lim-mit delimber processors
Logging & Sawmilling Journal - December/January 2015
from Risley Equipment through their quality control paces. More recently, McNeil
tried more than one new processor brand
before deciding on the 622c 4x4.
McNeil and Sons complements its log
harvesting activities with a log hauling
side. The company runs eight of its own
logging trucks—five Freightliners and three
Western Stars—and sub-contracts six others from regional owner operators.
When the Logging & Sawmilling Journal visited, McNeil and Sons logging crews
were working on various cutting permits
about 70 kilometres east of 100 Mile
House, near Bowers Lake.
The Waratah 622C on the JD 2154D
were proving what they could do and
helping make converts of the crew. In
total there were about 135,000 cubic metres in the area scheduled for harvesting
and delivery to West Fraser mills. The 100
Mile region encompasses a diverse range
of biogeoclimatic zones and harvesting
conditions. But McNeil has few concerns
about the 622C/2154D combination’s
versatility under differing operating and
ground conditions.
In winter, company crews are often assigned wetter ground with bigger diameter
wood; conversely in the summer, it’s typically smaller wood and drier sites. McNeil
reckons the 622C has got what it takes to
get the right quality of wood processed on
the ground for the company—wherever
they’re operating.
The nitty-gritty on Waratah’s new 622C head
W
aratah’s HTH 622C 4x4,
four-roller processing head
was designed with input coming directly from B.C. loggers working
alongside Waratah’s regional and overseas
engineering teams.
“We studied B.C. licencee field results
for multi-tree processing and it was evident from contractors and licencee feedback that what was often being gained in
productivity through multi-tree processing
was also risking or leaving the quality
aspect behind,” said Rob Agassiz, North
America Operations and Distribution
Manager for Waratah.
“Our customers approached us for
a 622 model that would do everything
our 622B model can do for single stem
productivity and quality, but coupled to a
level of multi-stemming capability where
contractors have a stronger chance of being able to meet saw log quality specs for
lengths and diameter,” said Agassiz. “Our
customers requested this new head be
capable of feeding a larger diameter range
of stems when multi-stemming.
“At the same time, they wanted the
ability to push the envelope in handling
peelers and large log sorts while matched
to a 21 ton carrier to minimize capital
cost and maximize fuel efficiency,” added
Agassiz.
The 622C has a number of new innovations including eleven new patents
pending, said Agassiz. New features
like two stem-diameter readout on the
display during multi-stemming means
an operator does not need to guess on
the two separate stem diameters, and
provides individual log volume recording.
The head’s dual photo eye-independent
find-end feature uses an industry first
laser technology in tandem for find end
of either multi-stem logs or single stem
applications. The dual laser design does
not need to be cleaned for upwards of
400 hours. Waratah’s automated shuffling mode is a step forward in traditional
independent log driving capabilities,
said Agassiz. This patent pending feature
allows a one button push for auto alignment of both stems (using the dual lasers),
and then drives both trees automatically
to the target length.
In addition, a new 622C hydraulic
valve was designed to enable the drive
arms to pendulum to maintain traction
even with two stems of varied diameter;
this allows the 622C to be run optionally
without a drive arm link. The head is
800 lbs heavier than the Waratah 622B
3 roller model. The 622c 4x4 is coupled
to a long list of standard features including Waratah’s 3/4 pitch main saw unit
with automatic chain tensioning, and the
360 continuous rotation rotator which
facilitates increased operator control and
productivity, says the company.
Logging &
& Sawmilling
Sawmilling Journal
Journal -- December/January
December/January 2015
2015
Logging
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